IRB Nations Cup - final day preview
By Chris Thau
From Bucharest
Three matches conclude the IRB sponsored Nations Cup in Bucharest, with the undefeated ‘A’ teams of Scotland and France battling for the main trophy, on Sunday.
The day will kick off with the fifth place playoff between Russia and Uruguay, still in search of that first elusive win in the six-nation tournament, followed by the clash between the hosts Romania and Italy A, who have both won one and lost one so far.
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Flair v craft in final
France’s captain Julien Tomas returns for the winner takes all clash with the Scots, partnered at fly half by the talented Regis Lespinas, but more significantly by the outstanding centre pair of Fabrice Estebanez and Lionel Mazars.
Will French flair and innovation come out on top against Scottish craft and rugby expertise? The Scots, under their new coach Andy Robinson are developing a more expansive game, in which continuity and enterprise are central to his long term strategy. This strong Scotland A team have been developing this kind of game during the last two weeks in Bucharest and the outcome of the new approach might be a scintillating final, with both sides playing their hearts out.
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Romania v Italy A
Hosts Romania and Italy A cross swords in the penultimate match, with the home side hoping to emulate their sterling performance against the French in round two. Alex Manta, who has had a storming tournament so far, returns to lead the side from number 8, with the round two skipper Marius Tincu of Perpignan in the starting lineup. Dragos Dima, who has lost so much of his promising career to injury, will start at loose-head prop.
The Italians captained by Antonio Pavanello, with the bruising Fijian-born Manoa Vosavai at number 8, hope to stem the Romanian forward charges and counterattack through their lively back division, marshalled by their fly half Ricardo Bocchino. A bonus point for the winning side could see them climbing up to the runner up position in the tournament, should they score four tries and have the right points differential.
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Fifth place playoff
Although they lost both their previous encounters Russia and Uruguay have given a good account of themselves and wish to finish the tournament with a flourish and a win. The playing standard of the two nations has improved considerably since last year and their clash here in the opening match of the day is anticipated with interest.
Simplistically, it would be labelled the attacking prowess of the Russians, frustrated by their inability to convert their attacking potential into points, against the defensively-minded Uruguayans, whose attacking flair has yet to be tested. In fact it is much more than that, with the Uruguayans strengthening their scrum, opting for their experienced man Rodrigo Sanchez in the front row. Russia have dropped their wunderkind Yury Kushnarev to the bench, with Alexander Yanyushkin taking over the fly half berth.
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